Weather Books

Great book , emotional, and helpful in healing after the tornadoes and bad storms...enjoyed it for children and myself.Used it in our home and school..recommend it for the kids of Oklahoma.

My copy of "The Storm" came today, and it's stunning. Everyone in my office stood around in the hallway as we looked through the kids' memories and drawings, utterly absorbed. At least five people immediately said they were going to order copies -- both for themselves, and for their schools.

The book has an almost visceral impact; the hurricane could have been yesterday, so strong are the emotional responses to reading it. We just wanted to gather all the kids in our arms, and somehow make the world right again.

I'm frequently quoted in this book, so have an interest in it
having been well done. John has done a fine job in giving explanations
that will appeal to readers from outside our community
and that should serve as a model for writers in
our field. He conveys technical information easily and makes
it interesting -- but I'm an easy sell. I have found about
6 mistakes in the text, but they are mostly trivial.

Linda Dahl's 'Stormy Weather' is one of the best among the many old and new books on jazz, women in jazz, etc. It is objective, well researched . If you want to learn about women in the jazz world , this is a must.

This collection of 12 episodes from Adventures in Odyssey covers the first summer of the long running kid's radio drama. It contains lots of humor and suspense as the gang in Odyssey face a summer they won't forget.

The set starts off with the two part "Family Vacation," which introduces the Barclay family as they try to take a vacation to Florida.

"The Day Independence Came" launches Irwin Springer back in time to the American Revolution in the days before the Imagination Station.

"Stormy Weather" finds Connie trying to talk her way into visiting California to get away from the Christians in Odyssey as a huge storm is approaching town.

The hilarious "VBS Blues" tells the story of Ned Lewis trying to put on a respectable VBS program with a group of guys who are more interested in creating problems then in actually learning anything from the Bible.

"KYDS Radio" was the very first time they toyed with the idea of a radio station in Whit's End. It didn't come back until later, but an interesting look at the beginnings of an idea. And some funny stuff along the way. "The highs will be in the lows of the uppers."

The gang always learns valuable lessons from "Camp What-a-Nut," and the first visit is no exception. And the cliffhanger between the parts is a real doozie.

The two part "Case of the Secret Room" finds Whit and Tom Riley's niece trying to solve the mystery of the skeleton in the basement of Whit's End.

Whit tells Jack and Lucy the story of Jonah and the whale ("Big fish. Whatever.") in "Return to the Bible Room."

The collection ends appropriately enough with "The Last Great Adventure of the Summer." This episode finds Terry Johnston learning something new about his dad as they are chased by spies.

I still remember listening to these episodes as a kid every week that summer. And this collection has gotten plenty of play time over the years. The stories are entertaining no matter how many times you've heard them, and lots of lines still get a laugh from me, even as I say it along with the characters.

Any one looking for a good story or a little of the early years of Odyssey will love this set.

Like his earlier novel THE SALT OF BITTER TEARS, Michael Meehan has, by way of his carefully constructed language, brought to the reader's reality the strange world of the Australian hinterlands of the 1950s. The characters that fill this novel are all unique and very real -- as odd as they are, they never come off as unbelievable creations. Also, as in his earlier work, the natural surroundings are almost a character themselves -- both the landscape and the weather (as implied by the title).

The reviews I've read of this novel -- as well as the jacket-flap information -- indicate that this is a partial retelling of Shakespeare's THE TEMPEST. I have to admit ignorance of that particular work (or perhaps just a faded memory since my schooldays, take your pick), so I can't really speak to the parallels between the two. The story herein stands well on its own, I must say -- Shakespearean shadows aside -- and is one that will, I think, remain with the reader (or in his/her dreams/nightmares) for some time to come.

It came to my mind that stormy weather can either isolate us with its power (and our own fear) or throw us together, forcing us to interact and leave our marks on the lives of others around us (for good or ill). In this story, there's a bit of both, although the latter scenario is the one that wins out -- and just about everyone involved comes away from the experience a bit richer, touched and changed by those around them.

I found this to be the most interesting book I have ever read! Furnas has the most alluring style , and the use of words is utterly fantasic. I learned more from this book than just history ; Furnas paints a picture with the text , you can feel the emotion of the times . The Grapes of Wrath has now a new meaning to me. I feel that the completeness of this work allows me to feel as though I lived during the times. So many intering parts of history , that I have never before known .

"Stormy Weather" by Henry A. Giroux is a penetrating and compelling analysis of the Hurricane Katrina catastrophe. Mr. Giroux places the event within its historical context in order to illuminate how the U.S. has been digressing away from democracy and towards authoritarianism. Intelligently applying Michel Foucault's concept of 'biopower' to discuss how the state chooses to exercise sovereign control over its citizens, Mr. Giroux presents an exceptionally powerful deconstruction and critique of the frightening world that neoliberalism has spawned. Mr. Giroux's erudite and passionate commentary also proposes how we might begin to reclaim our lost democracy.

The book has two chapters. The first discusses how the suffering of the poor in New Orleans underscores how neoliberalism has found it more convenient to dispose of populations considered to be economically unproductive than to care for them. Mr. Giroux contends that the media images of the poor, sick and elderly among the predominantly African-American populations who were left to fend for themselves exposed the persistence of racism. Mr. Giroux suggests that neoliberal policies that sacrifice the public interest in favor of privatization schemes and tax cuts for the wealthy are to blame for eroding the social compact where public works projects are gutted and large sectors of the population are marginalized, inlcuding those who were simply unable to leave New Orleans without access to private transportation. Suggesting that the government's response to the disaster was not simply a matter of incompetence but "malign neglect", Mr. Giroux discusses how security forces later cleansed the city of its poor in order to allow redevelopment for the benefit of corporate interests.

While much of this has been commented upon by others, a distinguishing characteristic of Mr. Giroux's work is his methodical peeling of the layers of the onion to connect the Katrina tragedy with the inner logic of the neoliberal economic system. To that end, the second chapter discusses the increasingly authoritarian practices of the U.S. government under the Bush administration. Mr. Giroux believes that preemptive war, spying, torture and illegal detentions are proof that the U.S. has embraced militarization as a domestic and foreign policy solution; this is intended to quell dissent and promote a market fundamentalism dedicated to consumerism and free markets where the rich are rewarded and the poor are punished. However, the author hopes that the outrage stirred by the Katrina disaster will compel citizens to challenge the prevailing orthodoxy and work cooperatively to restore justice and democracy.

I highly recommend this insightful, timely and powerful book to everyone.

Summer, the very best season of the year, is captured in Douglas Florian's marvelous new poetry collection, Summersaults. These 28 poems evoke the sheer joy of sizzling, shimmering, simmering, hazy, hot summer days, and the carefree fun of baseball, swimming, buzzing bees, and annoying flies, ocean waves, ice-cream cones, scooters, bikes and roller skates, fireflies, jumping rope, thunderstorms, and campfires. Mr Florian's delightful, engaging, rhyming verses are full of imagery, wordplay, energy and puns, and complemented by his cheerful childlike artwork in summer tones of bright greens, yellows, and blues. Together word and art deliver the magic of summer in all its simple splendor. Perfect for children of all ages, Summersaults is a charming little treasure, best read aloud and shared, that can take the coldest, snowiest day of the year, and turn it into a blazing, sun-filled day at the beach.

Got the book for my kid's preschool and they really enjoyed it. My son knows the seasons, dry and wet and can recognize the signs by looking at the plumeria trees. The book has great pictures and made an impression on my son. I say, "Yeah!"

Also, I like the fact that I'm supporting a local person's book.